Gunmen rob shop

Three weeks after armed bandits targeted a shop in Ottos, two gunmen returned Saturday and held up the same shop.
At the time of the incident, the shop was being manned by a teen under the watchful eye of his mother, and there were two customers inside.
The owner of For The People Confectionary on Rose Street told OBSERVER media that in the first incident on September 9, two masked men entered his shop and demanded that the two people who were inside turn over their valuables.
The businessman, who did not give his name, said the second time, on Saturday at about 5:30 p.m. while his 14-year-old son was tending the counter, two gunmen stormed the place again and stole approximately $300 in cash.
“A red car drove up and two gunmen came out the car. My son said they came in and asked for [valuables]. But, while this was happening [the child’s mother] realised what was going on because she was on the gallery when they drove up, so she ran out in the road and was calling out for the ‘police,’” he said.
In surveillance video obtained by this newsroom, what appears to be a red Hyundai Accent drove past the shop, before the driver reversed to the door of the small wooden shop. Two hooded men emerged from the two rear doors carrying what is believed to be guns. The hooded men entered the shop.
The gunmen were inside while the mother of the boy at the counter is seen running off the gallery to the waiting vehicle before she comes to a stop at the rear left passenger door which she pulls open.
The mother is seen frantically watching, using the car as a shield as the gunmen are inside with her son and the two customers.
The shop owner said that the driver was the only person sitting inside the vehicle when the mother pulled the door. The video shows a person sitting at the steering wheel wearing something white or grey to conceal his face. The mother said it was a hoodie with the string tightly pulled to disguise the driver’s facial features.
The vehicle bolts forward as the mother still has the car door opened. The gunmen quickly run towards the moving vehicle.
The owner said that he is still unsure why the shop is being targeted since he only sells the basic essentials.
“Nothing of value really in the shop. We sell rice, milk, crackers, Vienna sausages, toilet paper, bleach, macaroni and cheese,” he added.
Asked how his son was doing after the ordeal, the shopkeeper said, “My son is quite calm from the ordeal, he ok. They [gunmen] actually tried to take his phone, but they left with another phone that belonged to his friend.”
Police confirmed they received a report and are investigating the crime.
A copy of the surveillance footage will be available on antiguaobserver.com soon.